"Everyone remembers where they were when terrible things happen. What they were doing leading up to it. Just like the fall of Wall Maria" - Edith M. Brown's Diary, 846

Winter 845
Eight Mile, Shiganshina District

A lazy winter breeze blew through the district of Shiganshina, ruffling the trees as it passed by. Birds chirped as they dove and soared above the towering walls, encasing the people below. The calm and happy buzz encompassed the district as people went about their day; completely blissful in their ignorance of what was to come.

A simple two story house stood, sandwiched between the other houses that ran the length of the cluttered street. The rickety exterior blending in with the other broken houses around it and the wooded area that bordered the backends of the houses. A large wonky '44' sat on the front door, the paint peeling off in flakes.

Inside number 44, the faded and jaundice walls of the home were wallpapered in everything from detailed and precise diagrams to wild and messy figures. Little wooden toys and dirty clothes lined every available surface. Upon the piss-ridden couch lay a middle-aged man who grunted and groaned every now and then in his sleep. Several empty bottles of mead laid on the floor around him.

A tall red-head danced around the items strewn upon the kitchen floor as she stirred the slightly burned oatmeal where it hung over the fireplace. "Edith? Can you go call the others in for breakfast?" The older woman called to her younger sister, both ignoring the man on the couch.

The short auburn-haired teen in question, looked up from the small iron figure in her hands to her elder sister. "Okay, Freya" She replied as she swept up the pages of detailed alchemic diagrams that blanketed the table and stuffed them back into the large leather-bound book.

Tucking the book away in the box under the stairs, Edith made her way to the back door. Swinging it open, the hinges protested as the door hit the back wall with a loud bang. "Oi! Careful with the door!" Freya called from the kitchen as she continued to prepare breakfast.

Outside, Edith saw two of her brothers, Isaac and Philip, chopping the larger logs of firewood that her younger siblings, Caleb and Daisy, were hauling over to them. Looking down at the bottom of the porch steps sat their youngest sibling, Lewis, where he was weaving flowers together in a crown; two full racks of kindling sat at his feet.

"Hey Lewis, what 'cha got there?" Edith asked as she skipped down the steps to squat next to her youngest brother.
"I'm makin' a crown!" he crowed, showing the item to her. It was less of a crown and more a messy tangle of wildflowers somehow linked together. Not that she would ever tell him that.

"Oh cool! Are you gonna be, like the prince of the forest or something?"

"I'm gonna be a fairy princess!" he replied a serious look on his face as he continued to weave flowers together.

"Okay, well...Freya says it's breakfast time"

"Okay"

Edith waited until Caleb had scampered inside before she stood up and looked out towards where her other siblings were still working. She raised her fingers to her mouth and let out a piercing whistle, catching their attention. "BREAKFAST!" she called, hands cupping her mouth, before she turned on her heel and rushed back inside.

Freya ran her fingers over the full calendar on the wall, scanning it for any events. "Shit" she cursed as her fingers stopped on today's date, where the word 'TAXES!' had been written and circled in red.

Placing the jug of questionable water on the table, she twisted around to pull the container marked 'TAXES' off of the shelf and place it on the table where Philip, Edith, Lewis and Caleb had started eating breakfast. "Taxes" Freya stated as she swung back into the kitchen to fill up another bowl of oatmeal.
"Yeah" replied Philip as he poured himself a glass of murky water.

"Coming through!" called Isaac as he raced into the dining area with Daisy on his back, before dumping her in one of the spare chairs, and he took the other.
"Taxes" said Philip as he placed some money into the container and passed it onto Isaac, who in turn passed it onto Caleb and Edith, each putting in some money as they went.

"No! You got swampland on the front of that shirt!" Freya scolded. Daisy looked down at the stained shirt in question. It wasn't that bad, "Arms up!" ordered Freya as she pulled the shirt off of her sister, flipped it inside out and slipped it back on.

"Oh! Field trip, need Dad's signature" Caleb stated around a mouth of oatmeal, as he handed the paper slip over to Edith. Caleb was lucky, he was a couple of years older than her and allowed to go on the field trip, the local school organised every year to Trost.

Edith still had a couple of years to go till then. Wordlessly she took the paper slip and forged the signature without question, before handing it back to him. "Oh wow, Pip. That's getting really good" Caleb praised as he scanned the paper before stuffing it back into his pants.

"How much are we short?" Asked Freya as she leant against the kitchen counter, spooning lukewarm oatmeal into her mouth.
"$17.90" replied Edith.
"Oh, I'm smithing today, I should be able to put in, like $10 more" added Philip.
"Hey did, uh, Daisy put in any?" Isaac asked.
"Mmm" Philip agreed.
"You're almost ten. You're gonna have to start pulling your weight" added Edith as she took a swig of water.
"That's right, and get a real job. Not just dipping into the collection plate at the Wallists" Isaac continued. Daisy just nodded once in response and continued eating.
"I'm filling in for Maggie. I can cover the rest" said Freya as she dumped her empty bowl in the sink, rinsing it off with the water that was left in her cup.

"So Edith, anything special planned for today? See anyone?" Freya asked, ignoring the noises from the couch as their father stirred and their brothers left for work.
"Nah, not really" replied Edith, finishing the last of her breakfast and placing her bowl with the others in the sink and ignoring her sisters attempts to talk about her love life or lack thereof.

"If you two want a ride, hurry up!" Edith called to Lewis and Daisy as she grabbed her satchel from under the stairs, before meeting the two by the door.
"Is he dead?" Daisy asked as she and Lewis came to a hurried to stop beside her. Their father grunted and released a deadly fart as he rolled over. "Ugh! Gross!"
"Nope" replied Edith as the trio rushed out the front door and commandeered a pushbike which had been left lying on the street. Lewis sat snug on the handlebars and Daisy hung onto the back as Edith pedalled.

"Oi! That's my fucking bike!" called one of the neighbour kids as they zoomed off down the street. Daisy flipped them the bird as they passed.

The tolling of the town bell rang throughout the district as Edith, Lewis and Daisy wove through the crowds lining the streets a few hours after school had ended for the day, before finding a spot to sit on a large pile of wooden crates to watch the return of the Scout Regiment. Edith tuned out Lewis' praises he gushed for the men before him; who continued on in their procession of sad and broken soldiers under the watchful eyes of the townspeople.

Daisy glanced at Edith out of the corner of her eyes as they watched the soldiers march by, "D'you still wanna join 'em?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah, but you know how Rey is. If I so much as mentioned it, she's all 'you'll be a dog of the military!" or 'Ma didn't sacrifice everything, for you to throw it away!' I mean, by my age, Ma was already serving and a seasoned alchemist! I can barely even practise without Rey looking over my shoulder" Edith ranted as her eyes followed the soldiers.

"But you'd be safe. If you didn't join, I mean" said Daisy, her eyes following a cart of wounded.
"Yeah, but...I-I don't wanna be stuck as some housewife. Y'know?"

"...Yeah"

"MOSES! MOSES!" called an elderly woman as she burst forth from the crowd, into the stream of solemn soldiers. The crowd's attention now solely on her, as the procession froze, watching everything play out. "Beg your pardon, where is my son? He should be with you all. Oh please tell me he made it!" she cried, clinging to the commander's front. Surely she must've known what happened to him? Lewis was still in his hero worship stage, but even he must've had some inkling of what had happened.

"I wish I had better news" replied the Commander, "Give it to her" He couldn't even look at the woman as a small item was presented to the woman, wrapped in a bloody cloth. It was an arm. Moses' mother fell to the ground and wept, hugging the appendage to her bosom as the Commander continued, "I'm sorry. That was all that was left of him"

"H-He-he did good? He was brave? Tell me my son stood his ground to the bitter end! That his death meant something! TELL ME HIS SACRIFICE GAVE US A BETTER CHANCE!" she wailed, staring up at the Commander who had knelt down before her. The question seemed to have hit a chord with the Commander as he began to weep, bowing to the woman before him.

"He was brave! But...his sacrifice meant nothing. So with all our losses, it's ever the same...THE DAY WAS LOST! WE HAVE NOTHING! YOUR SON DIED BECAUSE OF ME! I SENT HIM TO HIS DEATH! I SENT ALL OF THEM TO THEIR DEATHS! AND THERE IS NOTHING TO SHOW FOR IT! ALL OF IT AMOUNTS TO NOTHING!"

"Hey Peggy?" Edith asked her friend from where the two lay on the riverbank, their skirts hiked up and their feet floating in the water; her eyes followed a pair of ducks as they soared above them.
"Yeah?" Peggy asked, her honeycomb hair flittering in the breeze as she glanced at her friend, before looking back at the cloudy sky.
"If you could be any kind of animal, what would you be?"
"Hm...I'd be a bird so I could soar up, up and away, away from this cage...I'd be free"
"Yeah, that'd be nice...Your Dad still giving you trouble?"
"...He says he got a good one lined up for me. Some old guy in Stohess with and I quote 'more money than God!' What about you? Your sister still on your case about following your Ma?"
"Yeah. She's got Daisy onto me too now"

Peggy opened her mouth to say more when blinding lightning lit up the sky and the ground rumbled, shaking everything to the core. "Holy shit! What was that?!" cried Peggy as she and Edith stumbled to their feet, away from the rolling water.
"Maybe they know?" asked Edith, pointing to a group of people standing in the middle of the street.
"Maybe" replied Peggy as the two made their way over to the other people.

Edith ignored her friend's attempts to ask someone what was going on, instead following their gazes to the wall. What she saw chilled her to her bones. She grabbed onto Peggy's wrist pulling her close. "What?" Peggy asked, still lost.
"Look" Edith replied, a choked gasp was all that Peggy could emit as she watched the nightmare play out.

A large meaty hand emerged from the towering smoke and gripped the top of the wall. The stone cracked beneath the weight as the head of the Titan soon appeared. "Oh Sina! That's impossible! The wall's 50 meters high!" Edith whispered, eyes bulging as she realised what she was seeing.

Everyone around them stood frozen in terror as they watched the Titan stand up to its full height above the gate. No one seemed to breathe as it reared its foot back and kicked the gate in. All at once the trance seemed to shatter.

Buildings shattered upon the impact of the shockwave, the bell tower was blown off its foundations and further into the city. People were knocked off their feet and crushed under flying debris. It wasn't until the Colossal Titan disappeared from view, did the screams of terror fill the air. Hordes of Titans were waddling through the opening and eating people left, right and centre.

"W-We have to go! Eddie! We gotta go now!" cried Peggy, pulling on her friend's arm towards the boats.

"L-Lewis and Daisy are over there! And Freya! And...!" rambled Edith as she shook off her friend's hand before she took off towards her home.
"Eddie! Wait!" called Peggy, racing after her friend.

The two dodged bloody boulders and wrecked houses as they made their way to the end of the Eight Mile. They didn't even get down the street before they were swept up in familiar arms. "Oh thank Maria! You're okay! You're okay!" cried Isaac as he peppered her head with kisses, hugging her close to him. Next to them, Peggy was clinging to Philip like he'd disappear if she let go.

"Izzy, we've gotta go!" Philip called, tugging on his brother's sleeve as the two picked up the girls and began the trek to the river.
"But what about Lewis or Daisy or Freya? We can't leave without them!" cried Edith, still clutching on to her brother.
"Freya's okay. She was down by Joseph's Bakery"
"But what about Lewis and Daisy?"

"Pip...Lewis and Daisy are dead"
"...What? No! You're lying!" Edith cried.
"I-I wish I was" Isaac choked out, tears streaming down his face.
"...You're lying! You have to be..." she whimpered, even as she watched a Titan reach down and pluck something from the wreckage of their home, chowing down on whatever they had taken.

"...And just like that, everything changed. At that terrible moment, in our hearts, we knew home was a pen; humanity, cattle"-TheFall of Shiganshina, Armin Arlert